Justice for Cynthia: Parker man and woman sentenced for 2016 murder

A Parker man and woman have both been sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for the 2016 murder of Cynthia Williams, whose body was found in a canal in the valley south of Parker.

Cynthia Williams

On Wednesday, Sharon Marie Clark, 57, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Diane J. Humetewa to 25 years in prison, followed by a term of five years of supervised release. Clark had previously pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and aiding and abetting. On December 20th, Jeffrey Scott Williams, 56, was also sentenced to 25 years in prison, followed by a term of five years of supervised release. Williams had previously pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and aiding and abetting.

On or between March 8th and 9th, 2016, Clark and Williams took the victim, Cynthia Williams, to Clark’s apartment in Parker. At the apartment, Williams zip-tied the victim’s wrists and ankles, Clark duct-taped the victim’s mouth closed and struck the victim in the face with her fists, and Williams wrapped the victim up in plastic. The victim was then dumped in a canal. The medical examiner determined that the victim’s cause of death was asphyxia due to drowning. The victim was a member of the Colorado River Indian Tribes, and the murder took place on the Colorado River Indian Tribes Indian Reservation, making it a federal case.

Cynthia Williams was not acting as an informant in drug matters for law enforcement, according to the La Paz County Sheriff’s Department, contrary to erroneous reports which circulated after she was found.

The suspects were arrested several months after the murder.

The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Colorado River Indian Tribes Police Department. The prosecution was handled by Christina J. Reid-Moore and Dimitra H. Sampson, Assistant U.S. Attorneys, District of Arizona, Phoenix.